Shooting at hospital reopening in Haiti, 3 people killed, many injured.
Three people, including two journalists, were killed in a gang attack on Tuesday as the largest public hospital in Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince, reopened. Gangs have taken over an estimated 85 percent of Port-au-Prince and forced the General Hospital to close earlier this year. Authorities had promised to reopen the facility, but as journalists gathered to cover the event, suspected gang members opened fire in a horrific attack on Christmas Eve.
Robeste Dimanche, a spokesman for the online media collective, identified the dead journalists as Marchenzie Nathoux and Jimmy Jean. Dimanche said an unknown number of journalists were also injured in the attack, which he blamed on a gang coalition. Haiti's interim president, Leslie Voltaire, said in an address to the nation that the victims of the attack included journalists and police. He did not say how many were killed, or provide details of the dead or injured.
The criminals will not be spared.
Voltaire said, "I offer my condolences to the victims, the national police and the journalists." He vowed that this crime would not go unpunished. A video posted online by journalists trapped inside the hospital showed two lifeless bodies on stretchers, their clothes soaked in blood.
85% share occupation
Radio Tele Metronome initially reported that seven journalists and two police officers were injured. Police and authorities did not immediately respond to requests for information on the attack. Street gangs have taken over an estimated 85 percent of Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince. They closed the general hospital during violence earlier this year that also targeted the main international airport and Haiti's two largest prisons.
Officials had promised to reopen the facility, but as journalists gathered to cover the event, suspected gang members opened fire. Video posted online earlier showed journalists inside the building and at least three people lying on the floor, apparently wounded. That video could not be immediately confirmed.
Murder of local journalists
Johnson Izo Andre, who is considered the leader of Haiti's most powerful gang and is part of a gang called Viv Ansanam that has taken control of much of Port-au-Prince, posted a video on social media claiming responsibility for the attack. The video said the gang coalition has not allowed the hospital to reopen. Haiti has seen journalists targeted before. In 2023, two local journalists were murdered in the span of a few weeks. Radio reporter Dumeski Kersaint was fatally shot in mid-April that year, while journalist Ricott Jean was found dead later that month.
Former Prime Minister visited the hospital
In July, former Prime Minister Gary Conil visited Haiti's State University Hospital, widely known as the General Hospital. The hospital was gutted and debris strewn. The walls and surrounding buildings were riddled with bullet holes, indicating fighting between police and gangs. The hospital is across the street from the National Palace, where several battles have occurred in recent months.
The health system is on the verge of collapse
Gang attacks have pushed Haiti's health system to the brink of collapse, with people looting, setting fires and destroying medical institutions and pharmacies in the capital. The violence has led to a surge in the number of patients and a shortage of resources to treat them. Haiti's health care system faces additional challenges during the rainy season, which is likely to increase the risk of water-borne diseases. Poor conditions in camps and makeshift settlements have increased the risk of diseases such as cholera, with more than 84,000 suspected cases in the country, according to UNICEF.